Tournament Preparation Strategy
for Junior Golfers
By Nick Duffy, BGGA Senior Coach
There are several factors junior golfers should research and consider prior
to playing a tournament – the course architect, playing yardage, weather
conditions and past tournament scores.
• Why is course architect important? Different
designers will have different characteristics
throughout their courses (Donald Ross- inverted
saucer greens and Nicklaus- dog leg rights with a
lot of bunkers). This will help you tailor your training
leading up to the tournament. On a tight golf course
preparation, you will be playing your home course
more effectively by playing the rough as a chip out.
• Playing Yardage- It is important to be familiar with
the length of shots you will have into the greens,
as short courses have more wedge work and long
courses will need hybrid and wood practice. Will all
the tee shots be drivers off the tee or will there be a
mix of clubs? You also need to use google maps to
have a plan before the practice round to know what
clubs to hit off the tee. Mapping out the widest area
on each hole makes it more efficient in the practice
round and training leading up to the tournament.
• Weather Conditions- You need a good idea ahead
of time if it will be cold or hot, rainy or windy. All
these conditions will affect your packing and
training leading up to the tournament. In cold or hot
environments, you need to pack the correct clothes
for the day, thermals and layers for cold days and
breathable clothes for the heat and extra gloves. If
you know there will be rain, be sure to pack extra
gloves (especially rain gloves), an umbrella, zip lock
bags to keep stuff dry, and your rain gear. The wind
preparation has more to do with the training leading
up to the tournament. A great deal of time spent
working on trajectories, shot shape and start lines
will help your preparation.
• Past Tournament Scores- This is not of ultimate
importance, but mentally getting ready for the scores
to be high or low can help. If the scores are low,
practice more from the forward tees of your home
club so you’re comfortable being able to score under
par. If the scores were high, spend my time playing
two ball worse ball matches to learn how to recover.
Tournament golf is an important part of junior golf
and the college recruiting process. It is critical to be
prepared when entering a tournament. Don’t show
up blind.